I don’t usually feature radio broadcasts on Free Albums Galore. God knows I’m tempted every day when I browse though the splendid mini-concerts in abundance at the Free Music Archive. There are so many good ones. But when I found this rare 2004 live performance of North Mississippi Country Hill Blues, I knew I was going to have to yield to temptation.

Fat Possum is a marvelous record label that showcases a lot of raw and authentic country blues by under-rated, and then unknown, practitioners including R. L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. Less celebrated but no less talented were three blues musicians, Paul “Wine” Jones, T-Model Ford, and Kenny Brown. In 2004 , the Fat Possum Juke Joint Caravan tour hit the road and somewhere down the line WFMU was lucky enough to get Jones, Ford and Brown into the studio. To quote an old diva of an actress who probably knew nothing about the blues, “Tighten your seat belt. It’s going to be a bumpy ride”.

Paul “Wine” Jones stayed pretty loyal to the Missisippi Delta style yet had a number of distinguishing trademarks; a lot of “Wah Wah” guitar riffing, driving bass and rhythm lines, plus a gritty but passionate vocal style. The five tracks on the set are all hard driving and raucous with “If You Love Me Like You Say” and “Stop Arguing” being highlights. Paul Jones passed away in 2005.

T-Model Ford aka James Lewis Carter Ford isn’t sure when he was born but is probably in his late 80s and didn’t start his recording career until he was in his 70s. He is still going strong and touring. After stints in a log camp, a gig as a trucker and ten years on a chain gang you would think his music would be as raw and rough as reality and it is. When asked how often he has been in jail, T-Model replied, “Every Saturday night, for a while”. Ford’s songs are a mix of Mississippi and Chicago blues with a bit of John Lee Hooker boogie thrown in for good measure. Of the four tracks by Mr. Ford, I especially like “Chicken Heads” and “Wish I Was a Catfish”.

Kenny Brown is the young-un of the trio. He did his apprenticeship with R. L. Burnside but, in my opinion, has evolved into one of the best blues talent still performing. His first album Stingray is a doozy. There are only two tracks on this WFMU broadcast by Mr. Brown, “Jumping on the Line” and, easily my favorite of the entire session,”Laughing To Keep From Crying”. Kenny Brown is the next generation in Missisippi Hill Country Blues, a genre that is threatening to become extinct butthankfully spurred on by Fat Possum Records and the emergence of radio broadcasts like this.

And if you like the music, run over to the Fat Possum web site and load up on the artists’ CDs.

Download page

It should be said at the beginning that there is no Wrench Tuttle. Former Blue Rodeo band member Bob Wiseman used the pseudonym and, from what I’ve read, went to great length to present him as a real person to the Canadian media. In Her Dream: Bob Wiseman Sings Wrench Tuttle was the Canadian musicians’ first solo album and was released in 1989. CHART magazine named it as one of the top 100 Canadian albums. Blocks Recording Club out of Toronto will be re-issuing a limited edition vinyl but the free and legal digital version is now available through WFMU’s Free Music Archive.

This album may best be described as a casual mixture of country and punk. Bob Wiseman feels at ease in both genres. His somewhat raspy and out-of-control voice makes the perfect edge to this rough and ready album. The opening “Older Brother” is a good example of his somewhat outrageous folk-rock blend and is what Hank Williams might sound like if he was a punk rocker. Other tracks like “Bhopal” are pure and surreal alternative while “Dog on a Leash” is blues-rockabilly. Whatever genre Wiseman leans into has his unique touch which I am tempted to call a Canadian version of Tom Waits’ equally rough and mystic styling. This excellent album will grow on you.

The album is available in its free and legal online version at WMFU’s Free Music Archive in 192kbps MP3.

Download

Listening to Johnny Hoodoo’s Country Blues is like taking a time machine back to the 1930s, sitting on a old back porch in Mississippi, and enjoying the traditional blues singing and guitar playing by legends such as Blind Blake and Reverend Gary Davis. The ten tracks on this very entertaining album are as authentic as you’re ever going to get from anyone in the 21th century, let alone a guy from Stirling, Scotland. The guitar work is just phenomenal and the singing isn’t bad either. The instrumental “Hoodoo’s Juju” is fairly amazing while you can hear the cicadas chirping and see the cotton growing on songs “Texas Easy Street” and “Sally Goodin”. “Willie The Chimney Sweeper” is reminiscent of Leon Redbone only better and “Shanty Blues” screams of gospel and rockabilly. And just when you thought you heard it all, Mr. HooDoo ends with a blues diamond-in-the-rough called “Gone Dead Train” the fitting highlight of the album. I know I’m terribly biased when it comes to this type of music but this is the most surprising and enjoyable online album I’ve heard in a long time.

Country Blues is available in VBR MP3 from Jamendo.

Download

Lonnie Johnson was a guitarist and vocalist who pioneered the use of the guitar in jazz and was just as comfortable singing the blues. Victoria Spivey was a major blues singer in the 20s and 30s. In the year of 1928 they recorded a quartet of songs that are landmarks of early blues. As was often the case, the songs were recorded in two parts adorning both sides of a 78rpm record. The internet archive’s 78rpm collection has collected all four songs totaling eight tracks allowing us to hear these rather rare gems that are now in the public domain. Both Johnson and Spivey continued to record separately all the way up to the 70s and did reunite for four more songs in 1961 but these 1928 masterpieces still ring with all the authenticity and hard living you expect from the blues.

The four songs are “Furniture Man Blues”, “Black Snake Blues”, “Toothache Blues”, and “You Done Lost Your Good Thing Now”. They all feature the back and forth dueling style of the blues duet and are loaded with double entendres. “Furniture Man Blues” is my favorite of the four and it is has a theme that repeatedly shows up in blues and black minstrel songs; that of the furniture man coming to repossess the furniture while the poor sweet lady tries to talk him out of it. I found this interesting essay that not only tells the history of these songs but has the lyrics to this old classic by Johnson and Spivey. The contrast between part 1 and 2 is quite revealing. The first half has Spivey pleading with Johnson to let her keep her furniture while Johnson moans that he’ll lose his job if he does that. In Part 2 the piano accompaniment become a bit seductive as Spivey sweet talks and bribes him into leaving her belongings alone (”When I get through, you’ll cancel every debt I owe”) and Johnson succumbs to the temptation:

Spivey: Come into my parlor, furniture man, and close the door
Johnson: Baby I can’t stand it. You will get me nervous, I’m sure
Spivey: I got something for you
Johnson: Why ain’t you said that long before?

The other four songs are just as clever and usually as obvious. The songs of Johnson and Spivey are all about the troubles in life, the endless battle between man and woman and, most importantly, a lot of fun. All together there is 24 minutes of good time blues on this excellent collection.

All tracks are available in Ogg Vorbis, 64kbps MP3, or VBR MP3. The VBR MP3s are about 96kbps MP3 which is just fine for these monaural and slightly scratchy transfers from the original recordings.

Download

Brave Nu World is a good example of the old saying “The sum is better than its parts”. Little Howlin Wolf aka James Pobeiga plays all the instruments on the album, none of them very well. His guttural voice is an acquired taste, not so much like his namesake but a weird combination of Captain Beefheart and Leon Redbone. LHW’s real talents is in mixing and over-dubbing, making all these elements meld into something different and interesting. I really dig the blues number “I’m Shufflin” and “Last Double Edge”. The strange avant-garde “Eulb”, “Astral Blue” and “Blue Coochology” moves into outsider territory. However my favorite track “Big Ole Bear” takes the album home and back into the artist’s individual interpretation of the blues. This is a odd but riveting album.

Brave Nu World is freely available from Ehse records in 160kbps MP3. If you enjoy the music support the artist by buying the higher quality sound CD.

Download

Dallas Kincaid plays a brand of blues rock that hovers precariously between psychedelica and just plain psycho. His album is titled If You’re a Heartbreaker, You Got a Broken Heart and it is a strange mixture of blues riffs, back alley guitar and mournful out-of-this-world vocals, sort of like George Thorogood on ’shrooms. It often sounds experimental in a grassroots back-to-basics way. The lyrics tend to be bizarre, a bit beat generation like Burroughs. One reviewer suggested a comparison with Captain Beefheart which makes sense too. Actually, this is quite a different and exciting record, something you won’t ever hear on the usual commercial venues yet rooted in traditional country, rock and blues traditions. “Love n Fears” has a delta blues influence that reminds me of The Black Keys. “The Ice Truck Killers” is unapologetically rock and roll until it drifts into a eerie slow psychedelic jam. Perhaps the most interesting track is “Cherry Chainsaw”, a soft ballad of a monologue that is somewhere between romantic and nightmarish. If you are looking for blues rock or shockabilly country with a different slant, you may have found it.

The album is available in VBR MP3 from Jamendo.

Download

Instrumental boogie and blues is the order of the day from France’s Trafic de Blues, a rollicking band complete with horns, blues harp, guitar, and a lively rhythm section. The six tracks on Fin de Cavale are full of dancing juke joint blues pleasure but the very live “Sweet Swing” get my pick for best track. Totally fun and totally blues, this album gets a big thumbs up from my alter ego, Blues_Hound. Who am I to disagree with The Dawg?.

Fin de Cavale is available from Jamendo in a full album zip of VBR MP3.

Download

Killing Jazz hails from Madrid, Spain although you could easily mistake them for some swing and blues band out of Texas. Their two albums offer a nice blend of authentic sounding blues and swing jazz that would be welcomed in any juke joint bar I’ve ever been to and I’ve been to my share.

Their first album is the self titled Killing Jazz. Vocalist Miguel Ángel Cortés is pretty much in the spotlight throughout this set and he has the chops to deal with it. His voice has the right tone to carry the music but I especially like him on the jump blues/swing numbers like “Was You Happy?” “Fit Fat Fine” and the Texas swing “I Left My heart in Texas”. He’s a little too happy on down and dirty blues like “You Don’t Love Me”. After all…It’s the blues! But “You Don’t Love Me” also has the advantage of showing off Killing Jazz’s resident blues harpist Andi Martin nicely. Things come together the best on their cover of “Rack ‘Em Up”, which is mainly known for the recording by Jonny Lang. Killing Jazz’s version is mellower but still drenched in the blues.

Their second release is appropriately called 2nd Round. The band sounds tighter especially in the dead-on backing by drummer Marcos Molina and bassist Perico Gómez. Again it is a combination of blues and swing but with more emphasis on swing. Cortes’ vocals seem more nuanced and assured. One of the tests of a good blues group is how well they deal with non-blues material. Killing Jazz passes with flying colors on a nicely re-vamped swing blues version of the Isham Jones/Gus Kahn standard “It Had to Be You”. Also great is the very jazzy cover of Peggy Lee’s “I Don’t Know About You”. But before you think Killing Jazz may be getting a little too civilized, they end with a rousing “Tired of Talking” with killer guitar and harp solos. Both albums are ideal if you are looking for a good time blues sound.

The albums can be found at Jamendo in 192kbps MP3. Both Killing Jazz albums are free but Jamendo gives you the chance to show your appreciation by leaving a donation to the musicians. So if you like the music, support the artists!

Download
Killing Jazz
2nd Round

Bombay Laughing Club is a curious mixture of blues, ragtime, psychedelica, and rock that is stirred, shaken, and served with a generous heap of humor. The best comparisons I can think of are the Holy Modal Rounders from the psychedic 60s and the music hall sound of The Bonzo Dog Band but the harder edged Captain Beefheart and the blues of Howlin’ Wolf are also influences. Bombay Laughing Club keeps us guessing with 14 highly varied tracks on their album The Golden Years. “Working Boy Blues” and “Kill You Dead” is coarse throated juke joint blues. “Suba Deba” is an Beefheart inspired romp that borrows from both punk and hip-hop as does the dance crazy “Space Machine. “Blue Berry” is ol’ timey madness while other tracks like “Jumping Bridge” and “Yak”confound easy classification. I really like this album but even if you don’t, you will certainly not be bored.

The album is available in 256kbps MP3.

Download

The Crevulators stir up a little country, a little blues and a little rock to make a heady brew of good ol’ rockabilly. Not bad for a bunch of Brooklyn boys! Their short (17 minutes) self titled EP is a tantalizing peek at what must be a kickin’ live band.

The EP gives you five tracks of foot-tappin’ music. “Anything You Want” has a sawdust-on-the-floor juke joint feel while “You’d Come Back To Me” might be a glimpse of what would happen if Carl Perkins went punk. “Hung Over” is a bit too rough around the edges for my taste but “State of Mine” gets right back on track with some fine Tex-Mex influenced rock. Finally “Gambler’s Blues” is just about the right dosage of punk and blues to end this short but cool EP.

The album is available from You Are Not Stealing Records from their download page in 192 kbps MP3 or you can download the full album zip (EP zip?) from the link below.

Download

Nobody’s Bizness is a blues ensemble from Portugal that does a good job as recreating a traditional acoustic blues sound. Nice slide guitar solos and an impressive female vocalist sums up the reason this album is so enjoyable. Petra has a pleasing blues/early jazz vocal style that remind me of Maria Muldaur. There is also Catman, who, while not as authentically blue, can carry a jaunty and entertaining vocal. I’ve offered a few other European blues bands on this site but Nobody’s Bizness is probably the best at capturing the essence of the blues.

The album is available as separate tracks via You Are Not Stealing Records from their download page or you can directly download the album zip from the link below.

Download

The Black Keys are a rock duo out of Akron, Ohio. Guitarist / vocalist Daniel Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney play an intense blues based rock that many compare to The White Stripes. However, in my opinion, the Black Keys have an earthier, primal sound that owes much to the juke joints of the South and to blues stalwarts like R. L. Burnside and John Lee Hooker. They are certainly one of the most exciting rock groups today.

The Black Keys now have a free online EP titled The Live EP on their Myspace page. The four tracks total slightly over 16 minutes and are typical of the hard driving music they do so well. “No Trust” shows off Auerbach’s snarling vocal style. “Elevator”‘is a nice example of how well just guitar and drum can rock out a crowd. But “Girl on my Mind” and “10AM Automatic” are the best tracks, showing incredible intensity and a raw power that is rare among current rock bands. If you never heard The Black Keys before, you are in for a treat.

The EP is available in separate tracks of 192kbps MP3 format. If you enjoy the music, support the artists by buying their CDs.

No longer available

Patchworks on the Blues may not be the best blues band in Europe. They may not even be the best blues band from their native country of Germany (correction: Austria!). But they are a sterling example how fun and enthusiasm can make up for lack of virtuosity. Both of their online albums appears to have been recorded in a jam session environment with little editing. The good times and the blemishes are there for all to hear. The albums must have been a gas to record. They are also, despite the limitations, a gas to listen to.

Sessions is 76 minutes of nimble acoustic slide guitars, gritty blues harp. and moaning vocals. The extended “Natalie” has some great guitar work while Muddy Water’s “Hoochie Coochie Man” give the boys a chance to show their ability to nail a blues classic. There are 5 cover tracks and 7 original songs by A. Weilhartner. It is a complement to say that the originals often sound as authentic as the covers. Weilgartner has a pleasant baritone voice that often hints of rockabilly more than blues. There’s some nice honky tonk piano on “The Shake” and I could swear I saw T-Bone Walker smiling from the grave during a wild grind of a “Stormy Monday”.

The 12 tracks on 11-4-1 were recorded in one day with the same casual energy heard on the first album. All the songs are originals and the band actually sounds a bit tighter and practiced. This is a more intimate “living room” affair with just guitars, vocal, bass and drum. There is good guitar work throughout. In fact, the slide guitarist steals the show on most tracks. The vocals have a more traditional blues feel and everyone seems to be having a good time.

Both albums are available in 192kbps MP3 by either separate tracks or full album zips.

Download
Sessions
11-4-1

The new music blog BlocSonic has the potential to be one of the most exciting entities in internet music. The goal is to offer a complete online album monthly showcasing free legal music from various netlabels. The Netbloc series will offer music from all genres complete with art and a pdf format booklet of liner notes.

If Volume One: The Opening Salvo is an example, we are all in for a treat. The choices come from rock, electronica, world ambient, dub, and even blues. I certainly know the art of finding good quality free and legal music can be easily equated to the proverbial needle in a haystack. BlocSonic appears to have a talent for finding needles. The first track is an attention getting “Seven Faces of Him” by a tight post-rock band called M.A.C.Z.A. Things immediately chill down with a tasty Europen hip-hop number by Raflesia. But BlocSonic doesn’t play it safe as the third track throws you into Blues territory with a down-home rendition of “Good Ol’ Shoe” by Patchwork on the Blues. The variety and quality of this compilation is so strong I’m tempted to list and describe all ten tracks but here are a few favorites. Melissa Welch’s “Nano Moon Coral” continues to prove that Ms. Welch is one of the more creative artists currently doing down-tempo and IDM. Happy Elf’s retro 80s’ synthesizer groove never sounded never than on “You Foxy Lady”. Finally, Phou Trakk has a new age / Asian groove piece titled “Long Transfer” guaranteed to mellow out your day.

The album is available in FLAC format or MP3s of 192kbps or 320kbps. The excellent 36 page booklet is in PDF format. After you sampled this great collection, I’m sure you will want to come back for the series each month. Bookmark it as your second favorite source for free and legal MP3. ( I don’t think I need to tell you what your first choice for internet music should be, do I?)

Download

I can honestly say the Mississippi Alligators are the best Spanish blues band I ever heard if only because they are the only Spanish blues band I ever heard! The artists actually call their music “Punk Blues” and some tracks like “Rockstar” leans toward rock if not punk, but the dedication they have to authentic Mississippi delta blues and boogie is quite obvious.

Their CD, Babylon Boogie, is 11 tracks of pure fun. While their artistry may not equal that of R. L. Burnside or John Lee Hooker they still have lots of heart. Their arsenal of slide guitar, blues harp. violin, and drums keeps an infectious boogie beat while Looke’s slightly out-of-whack vocals keeps you grinning. They can get a cool boogie thing going as on “Boogie Number 666″ and “De Rodillas Por Detras” which is actually Hooker’s “Boom Boom”. Looke’s slide guitar and Albert’s blues harp have a well honed traditional style, Big Joe’s Violin gives the band a unique sound, and Ivan keeps everyone on time. Want some other hignlights? “Nuevo Cadillac” starts with an impressive slide guitar solo and then settles into a down and dirty boogie that would make the Rolling Stones envious. “Quiero Beber” shows off a little ska punk amongst the blues lyrics. “Early This Morning” is a slow grinder and allows everyone room to show off their chops. However the best track has to be “Me Enamora Facilmente”. It is an acoustic joy in which all participants show real rapport with each other. The bar sounds in the background on this track only adds to the fun.

The album is available in 128kbps mp3. Special mention should be given to the great album cover that begs to be burned (to CD, that is).

Update: The original website is no longer available. However the full album is still downloadable from the band’s Myspace page. I’ve changed the link to take you there.

Download

György Perczel plays some of the most authentic sounding blues and jazz piano I have heard from a new artist in a while. The two online albums exudes with a down and dirty attitude more representative of the juke joints and jazz clubs of the U.S. rather than Perczel’s native country of Poland. Perczel has a style not unlike his fellow compatriot Adam Makowicz but I also hear clear influences of New Orleans pianist James Booker and Boogie woogie masters like James Johnson and Meade Lux Lewis.

Born to be Blues is 30 minutes of piano blues and jazz. The first three tracks are solo piano. Perczel not only has great chops but a true respect for the blues, making these tracks my favorite examples of his work. The title track is especially riveting with Perczel all over the keyboard in one imaginative idea after another. The last two tracks are jazz trio numbers with “Fade Blues” featuring some nice swinging improvisations. If you love old style blues piano or acoustic swing jazz a la Oscar Peterson, you will love this.

Inner Vybe is quite different. Perczell uses an electric keyboard with a modern group in the funk and fusion mode. While not as good as Born To Be Blues, it is still an enjoyable electric jazz outing.

Both albums are in 128kbps MP3. If you enjoy the artist, buy his CDs in higher quality sound.

No longer available

Previously I reviewed More Music From The Florida Folklife Collection. I also complained that the first volume, which was not reviewed, did not have downloadable tracks in MP3. It appears someone with the Florida Folklife Archives heard me as it now has separate downloadable tracks! So here is a bonus for you readers; an official review and link to the original Music From The Florida Folklife Collection!

This first collection uses very obscure artists and has a traditional grass roots feeling. The recordings were recorded over a longer period of time. The earliest one is a 1939 recording of author and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston singing an old work song, “Shove It Over”. Most are from the Florida Folk Festivals of the 1950s and 1980s. Others are field recordings. Again, picking highlights is difficult. There’s moving 1956 gospel from the Amigo Male Singers. Archie Lee gives an funny and unique take on “The Arkansas Traveler”. You can find ‘Ol’ Timey Music’ in “The Old Country Church” and “Devil’s Dream”. Little Benny Cox’s “Just Got Married” is delightful even though the song is a bit strange coming from an 11 year old boy. The Blues fans will delight in Moses Williams’ “Which Way Did My Baby Go”. It is all brought together with some nice Latino tracks, an Native American chant, and some spoken narratives. Due to it’s reliance on older recordings and mostly unknown non-professional talent, I must say this is more of a archival collection than the first and may be more representative of Florida folk heritage than the second volume.

The MP3s are recorded in 128 kbps MP3. I would ask you to support the artists but I have a feeling you may not hear most of these musicians anyplace else!

Download

Here’s a great idea that I hope other institutions will pick up. The state-funded Florida Folklife Collection has released two collections of folk music taken from the state’s vast archives. The music reflects the wide cultural diversity in Florida.

More Music For The Florida Folklife Collection is a marvelous compilation. Most of it was recorded at the Florida Folk Festival with superb sound quality. You will find some major names here like Doc Watson, Bill Monroe, and Etta Baker. But some of the real gems are from lesser known artists who may have been forgotten if it wasn’t for Folk Art research projects like this. It’s hard to pick favorites from such a high quality collection but I’ll try. Don Groom sings in “I Believe” about a dream world where “Elvis is alive and Jimmy Hoffa’s comin’ home someday” Thelma Bolton and Tom Walton sings a rousing blues about “Butter Beans”. There’s classic bluegrass by the Stanley Brothers from a 1956 radio broadcast. Jeannie Fitchens’ “Cruel Mother” is a beautiful folk ballad in the traditional style. Finally, James Kelly’s fiddling on “Wellington’s Reel” is simply amazing.

The album is available in downloadable 256kbps MP3. There are WMA and RA files but they seem to be streaming only. There is a volume one that you can find here but it unfortunately does not meet this site’s criteria as there are no separate downloadable tracks. But don’t despair. You can request a complimentary CD from the state archives!

Download

Spencer Bohren came of age during the blues-folk revival of the 60s and he never appears to have left it. The singer-songwriter has a firm grip of blues and New Orleans music. He lived on and off in New Orleans and his 1991 French released CD Full Moon is full of Louisiana and Cajun influences. His music, all original songs, is mellow and folkish with just enough blues to give it a edge. I especially like the Cajun influenced materials like “C’mon Down” and “Disappearing Nightly”. However the title track is a noteworthy ballad.

It is available in 128kbps MP3s. If you like the artist, please support him by purchasing his other albums.

No longer available